It Worked!

I wanted to show everyone that my tray actually worked. I know it's not great like the experienced potters pieces usually shown, but hey I'm a newbie I get to be happy my first tray survived the kiln, right? You all helped so much to make it possible. After the first colors came out so horrible after the bisque firing you all gave me many helpful pointers. Especially the fact that you can apply underglazes to bisque and then cover with clear glaze and not have everything smear around then just pop it in the glaze kiln without refiring the underglaze first. It's far from perfect, there are some tiny little pin holes here and there but I'm thinking maybe they happened because I had to apply the underglazes twice so they were quite thick by the time I got to the clear glaze. I'm also wondering if maybe some of the cross hatch type texture I used to make "fur" might have had something to do with it too so will know not to add those next time around. All in all I am happy with it after all it could have been MUCH worse.

Amazingly enough the tray is FLAT, it doesn't wobble, that surprised me as I was sure it would warp in the glaze firing. It measure 12x18 inches by far the biggest thing I have every created, well that's not saying much since its only the 2nd thing I've finished so far.

I wanted to show everyone that my tray actually worked. I know it's not great like the experienced potters pieces usually shown, but hey I'm a newbie I get to be happy my first tray survived the kiln, right? You all helped so much to make it possible. After the first colors came out so horrible after the bisque firing you all gave me many helpful pointers. Especially the fact that you can apply underglazes to bisque and then cover with clear glaze and not have everything smear around then just pop it in the glaze kiln without refiring the underglaze first. It's far from perfect, there are some tiny little pin holes here and there but I'm thinking maybe they happened because I had to apply the underglazes twice so they were quite thick by the time I got to the clear glaze. I'm also wondering if maybe some of the cross hatch type texture I used to make "fur" might have had something to do with it too so will know not to add those next time around. All in all I am happy with it after all it could have been MUCH worse.

Amazingly enough the tray is FLAT, it doesn't wobble, that surprised me as I was sure it would warp in the glaze firing. It measure 12x18 inches by far the biggest thing I have every..,, created, well that's not saying much since its only the 2nd thing I've finished so far.

As a crocheter I am obsessed with the way you used a pineapple doily to mark the tray. I live for crochet pineapples and have been planning to do that technique myself. (especially for bowls and buttons)

Learning On my Kick wheel with my vintage Paragon (from the late 1960's)

Thank you everyone! It's been a huge learning curve but am totally hooked. Doing test tubes next to find the perfect shade of Pug next so I can finish glazing the sculpture I use as my avatar. This forum is amazing everyone is so willing to help and support each other.

Rebbylicious yes I LOVE the effect that the doily pattern gives to the clay and plan to use doilies to pattern other forms as well.

Thank you everyone! It's been a huge learning curve but am totally hooked. Doing test tubes next to find the perfect shade of Pug next so I can finish glazing the sculpture I use as my avatar. This forum is amazing everyone is so willing to help and support each other.

Rebbylicious yes I LOVE the effect that the doily pattern gives to the clay and plan to use doilies to pattern other forms as well.

Terry

I have used doilies and seashells to create buttons and beads out of clay. I have not had the guts to do it on a larger scale yet.

Learning On my Kick wheel with my vintage Paragon (from the late 1960's)

As a crocheter I am obsessed with the way you used a pineapple doily to mark the tray. I live for crochet pineapples and have been planning to do that technique myself. (especially for bowls and buttons)

if you can make pineapples at will, try making a full size fish using pineapple stitches as scales. there was someone at a craft fair in the 1980s whose fish looked so real that people asked how she got all the detail, did she press a dead fish? she told us that her mother made the original crochet shape and she just rolled it into each piece of clay and formed a dish around it. maybe you could do something like that. they were beautifully made.